What works for one bird really does not work for all and each and every bird and animal should be treated this way. Even the good avian vets learn each and every day because although the result is the same the cause is sometimes completely different.
For example, my ringneck were biting her new blood feathers so badly that it bled up to twice a day. I phoned the vet and went to him twice about this and he wanted to assure me that it was because she bumped it and it was hurting and I should just keep her still - locked up in her sleep cage. This is what his experience taught him but each bird are different.
When I went to him the last time I insisted that he must pull those 3 feathers that she kept on biting and I insisted that she did NOT fall. He then wanted to put a collar around her and keep her over night because if she did not fall then it means that she started to pluck her feathers. I refused and told him to just pull the feathers and I will deal with the problem from there on. He finally gave in and said to me that it will only prolong the problem of falling like a rock and that I will be back within a week.
He then took his tool to pull it and realized that those feathers were so loose that he simply had to slightly pull with his fingers and they were out. He was shocked! He learned from my parrot that feathers can sometimes hurt without bumping them and that if he does not want to pull them out then she will pull it out by herself. After he removed the feathers my girl has turned into the busiest - happiest - singing little girl that you can find.
The point is that you must observe your bird and listen to yourself. Advice is good and vets are brilliant but NOBODY can teach you better than your individual bird. What goes for one does NOT go for all and this is where vets keep on making mistakes. A good vet and a good keeper learns everyday.
(For those who do not know, this is also one of the vets that send me home and said my parrot was not sick - they made me out as paranoid. I kept on going back and even went as far as lied the symptoms worse. Only then did they finally discover that she had metal poisoning. It took a month of meds before she recovered.)
BELIEVE YOUR OBSERVATIONS.
For example, my ringneck were biting her new blood feathers so badly that it bled up to twice a day. I phoned the vet and went to him twice about this and he wanted to assure me that it was because she bumped it and it was hurting and I should just keep her still - locked up in her sleep cage. This is what his experience taught him but each bird are different.
When I went to him the last time I insisted that he must pull those 3 feathers that she kept on biting and I insisted that she did NOT fall. He then wanted to put a collar around her and keep her over night because if she did not fall then it means that she started to pluck her feathers. I refused and told him to just pull the feathers and I will deal with the problem from there on. He finally gave in and said to me that it will only prolong the problem of falling like a rock and that I will be back within a week.
He then took his tool to pull it and realized that those feathers were so loose that he simply had to slightly pull with his fingers and they were out. He was shocked! He learned from my parrot that feathers can sometimes hurt without bumping them and that if he does not want to pull them out then she will pull it out by herself. After he removed the feathers my girl has turned into the busiest - happiest - singing little girl that you can find.
The point is that you must observe your bird and listen to yourself. Advice is good and vets are brilliant but NOBODY can teach you better than your individual bird. What goes for one does NOT go for all and this is where vets keep on making mistakes. A good vet and a good keeper learns everyday.
(For those who do not know, this is also one of the vets that send me home and said my parrot was not sick - they made me out as paranoid. I kept on going back and even went as far as lied the symptoms worse. Only then did they finally discover that she had metal poisoning. It took a month of meds before she recovered.)
BELIEVE YOUR OBSERVATIONS.
